http://www.ballot-access.org/…

In approximately half the states, the number of signatures required for a new party, or an independent candidate, depends on how many voters voted in the last election, or on how many people were registered to vote in the last election. In some of the states with the most restrictive requirements, the 2010 or 2012 requirements are substantially higher than they were in 2006 or 2008. This is because, across the nation, turnout and registration were relatively high this season.

California requires a statewide independent candidate to submit a petition of 1% of the number of registered voters at the last election. In 2008 a statewide independent needed 158,372 signatures, but in 2010 such a candidate will need 173,041 signatures. No one has qualified as a statewide independent in California since 1992.

Georgia requires a statewide independent candidate to submit a petition of 1% of the number of registered voters at the last election for which that office was elected. In 2008 an independent presidential candidate needed 42,489 signatures. In 2012 an independent presidential candidate will need 57,582 signatures, unless the law is changed. In 2010, a new party that wishes to run a full slate of candidates for U.S. House will need 287,910 signatures.

Texas requires an independent presidential candidate to collect signatures equal to 1% of the last presidential vote. In 2008 such a candidate needed 74,108 signatures. In 2012 such a candidate will need more than 80,531 signatures (Texas hasn’t finished its official tally yet; the requirement will be somewhat higher than 1% of the unofficial tally).

North Carolina requires a new or previously unqualified party, and a statewide independent, to submit signatures equal to 2% of the last gubernatorial vote. In 2008 the requirement was 69,734. In 2010 and 2012 it will be higher than 85,376.

Just can’t get a break can they?

http://www.ballot-access.org/…

According to the campaign website, Cindy Sheehan has qualified for the ballot as an independent against House Speaker Nancy Pelosi in California’s 8th district.

An email sent this afternoon to supporters says she turned in over 20,000 signatures with at least 10,198 qualifying.

Sheehan is the first independent House candidate to qualify for the California ballot since 1996. California’s requirement for independent candidates for U.S. House is the 4th most difficult in the nation (only Georgia, Illinois, and North Carolina have more severe requirements).

She has the endorsement of the local Peace and Freedom Party and Green Party.

Are her policies better then Pelosi’s? Not by much but at least she’s anti-war and an outsider.

http://www.ballot-access.org/…

Although Louisiana holds a presidential primary on February 9, the Republican Party chooses its delegates to the national convention with a two-step caucus/convention system. The first round was held on February 22, when approximately 10,000 Louisiana Republicans turned out to vote in eleven different cities for delegate to the state convention. Each U.S. House district chose 15 delegates.

It appears that Ron Paul supporters outnumbered the supporters of any of his opponents. But since this was predicted, the supporters of Rudy Giuliani, Mike Huckabee, John McCain, and Mitt Romney, cooperated to set up a “fusion” slate of unpledged candidates for Delegate. The “fusion” slate, labeled the “Pro-Life/Pro-Family” slate, beat the Ron Paul slate in each of the 7 U.S. House districts. Formally, the “fusion” slate billed itself as an “uncommitted” slate, and no one really knows how many supporters of each presidential candidate are on the fusion slate, except the campaigns themselves.

This is what happened in Wyoming too. Over at LewRockwell.com/blog they have a link to a handout for the Pro-Life/Pro-Family delegate slate. It’s sad they have to resort to ganging up just to keep him out. Hopefully some of those chosen are pro-Paul.

http://www.thelibertypapers.org/…

Out of 81 candidates running as Libertarians in Tuesday’s elections, 14 (17%) won (full results here). While this may not sound very encouraging, it is encouraging to me to see at least a few Libertarians actually winning elections and holding public office. A small town mayor here, a judge there, and a hand full of city council members can make a difference in their communities. This can be especially important dealing with issues such as eminent domain, zoning, and property rights in general.

It’s good to see that the Libertarian Party is capable of running winning campaigns in local elections. We have a long way to go before we can hope to populate the state legislatures, governors’ mansions, and state courts with Libertarians, much less anything as ambitious as the U.S. House, Senate, and the Oval Office but that doesn’t mean we cannot win on the local level where the government is closest to us.

I’m not familiar with our success rates in the past but 17% sounds pretty damn good to me. I’ve been thinking perhaps next election I’ll run on the Libertarian ticket for something.